Transcripts for KSKA 91.1 FM [Public Radio for Alaska] KSKA 91.1 FM [Public Radio for Alaska] 20191026 140000

From n.p.r. News in Washington and joyous night or the House is set to resume its impeachment inquiry of President Trump shortly the acting assistant secretary of state for Europe Philip Reeker is scheduled to provide testimony a day after a federal judge validated the impeachment inquiry as she ordered the Justice Department to turn over a dac to grand jury materials from the Moeller report to the House Judiciary Committee N.P.R.'s Meg Anderson reports that decision weakens the Republican argument that the impeachment inquiry into President Trump is invalid grand jury investigations are usually kept secret and the Justice Department wanted to keep it that way in the case of the miller investigation but House Democrats argued they're entitled to the materials and chief judge Beryl Howell of the u.s. District Court for d.c. Agreed the White House has also argued that the House needs to vote before investigating the president but in her ruling house said quote House resolution has never in fact been required to begin an impeachment inquiry in a statement House Judiciary Committee chairman Jerry now Blair said the ruling recognizes the impeachment inquiry quote fully comports with the Constitution how order the materials to be turned over by October 30th the administration can appeal Maggie Anderson n.p.r. News Washington strong winds expected to pick up this weekend as firefighters battle flames in both Northern and Southern California one of the worst wildfires has burning near Los Angeles is known as the tick fire and it's been threatening homes around Santa Clarita fire led to evacuations but some people were allowed to return last night in l.a. County fire chief says Forecasters expect the winds to reverse themselves today we're expecting when shipped so we want to go to work again secure our communities and keep the fire in this right but we do have a once you are the back behind is back into it for. Northern California the utility p.g. In need says it will decide today whether to cut power to hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses in the Bay Area Federal Government officials are denying a report in The Financial Times that suggests prime minister Boris Johnson's plans to break promises that he plans to break promises he made on Bracks at Vicki Barker reports from London the news could threaten the slender majority Johnson won for his deal the Financial Times reports Prime Minister Boris Johnson is secretly planning to divert from e.u. Workplace and regulatory standards after brags that despite his repeated pledges to the contrary an opposition Labor Party official says the leaked document proves Johnson's deal in her words is a blueprint for a deregulated economy which will see vital rights and protections torn up Maria buttin is back in Moscow she arrived today after being released from a prison in Florida between a Serb most operate team month sentence for conspiring to act as a Russian agent this is n.p.r. . Major League baseball's World Series the Houston Astros got one back last night they beat the Washington Nationals 4 to one and looked even the series in tonight's game for the national still lead the best of 72 games to one but Astro's manager a.j. Hench is looking at the victory as a turning point for Houston mindset wise I think we're going to be really good at it taking it you know this is that little cliche one game at a time we've been good at it but a win was huge for us tonight to you know sort of to sort of reenergize the the fact that this series is clearly not over you know when for the Nationals tonight would move Washington to within one victory of the team's 1st World Series title at the Rugby World Cup in Japan England has reached its 1st final in 12 years with a $19.00 to $7.00 win over 2 time defending champion New Zealand the b.b.c. Zandi Swiss reports on England's victory. When the final whistle went with the score $197.00 celebrations from the thousands of England fans inside the stadium they've had a rocky few years England rugby team on the Eddie Jones they struggled at times last year but they have found their form at the perfect time and you could see just what it meant to the fans you suspect the celebrations will continue long into the night here in York Harbor up to what will be a famous victory and their 1st World Cup final since 2007 England's opponent in next weekend's final will determine tomorrow when Wales faces South Africa the other semifinal match of Trail's night or n.p.r. News support for n.p.r. Comes from n.p.r. Stations other contributors include the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and the estate of Joan Kroc whose bequest to serves as an enduring investments in the future of public radio and the John d. And Catherine t. MacArthur Foundation at max found a dot org Support for Alaska Public Media comes from Continental Subarus service department for oil changes and tire rotations with no appointment needed to learn more at Continental dash Subaru dot com and from the Duluth trading store in Anchorage 14005 square feet of average ousting workwear for hard working men and women Duluth trading in anchorage off old Seward Highway and Diamond Boulevard. This is Weekend Edition from n.p.r. News I'm Scott Simon a week of blunt testimony and public displays so we'll try to put some blunt questions in public to Ron Elving n.p.r. Senior Washington editor and correspondent Ron thanks for being with us good to be with you Scott Ambassador William b. Taylor didn't use the phrase quid pro quo but Ron in English what did he say in his opening statement that Democrats and even some Republicans said this week they found injurious to the President Taylor said the president wanted the Ukrainian leader to announce in public that he was investigating 2 conspiracy theories one about the 2016 election one about Joe 100 Biden theories supported by no independent investigation whatsoever Taylor said these marching orders came to the top u.s. Officials in Ukraine from the president and here's the real point and Bassett or Taylor said President Trump made it clear that quote Everything about the u.s. Relationship with Ukraine was contingent on this including the all military aid Ukraine desperately needs to fend off Russian incursions on their frontier you don't have to be a Latin speaker Scott to call that a textbook quid pro quo and even some Republicans were openly rattled aren't they. In varying degrees yes because now they were hearing precisely what they'd said they needed to hear so the dots were not just being connected in this case they were being hard wired together. And my response or group of Republican House members who I don't know the term of art more stormed barged into a secure House committee room 3 House committees were preparing to hear testimony from Laura Cooper a deputy assistant secretary of defense now 1st a lot of them could have just walked into the meeting without making such a show of it right that's correct yes you know it's important to note that these 3 committees conducting this inquiry have nearly 50 Republican members all of whom are entitled to be inside the closed door hearings and indeed most of those Republicans have been attending the closed door sessions although as you say on this occasion roughly a dozen of them who could have been inside the hearing chose instead to swell the ranks of the protesters outside and did they violate security protocol by bringing cell phones into a secure conference room they did apparently by using their cell phones to live tweet their protests in real time they exposed anything in the secure area to any spying agency that may have gained access to one of those lawmakers phones run based on testimony that's already known Do you believe Republican House members really want more public hearings or just to use it as a as an issue for the moment the Republicans want more than just public hearings which will happen in the next phase but hearings that they want would give them the right to call witnesses of their own and have more control over the proceedings in general and that is much less likely to happen a federal judge yesterday ruled the Justice Department must release grand jury testimony that Robert Muller secured as part of his investigation into Russia's attempts to undermine the 2016 election what do we have reason to believe might be there you remember back when the mother report 1st came out they redacted some of the names of people who had been mentioned in grand jury testimony so one element my. Be some of those names and those might be of interest to the impeachment inquiry but perhaps the most important part of the ruling yesterday was that the current impeachment inquiry in Congress is legal and constitutional ie legitimate and it subpoenas have the full force of law which will provide even more impetus to the investigations going on indeed it will n.p.r. Senior editor Washington editor and correspondent Ron Elving thanks so much for being with us thank you Scott the impeachment inquiry is moving along as House Democrats and even Republicans question more and more people today is Philip Reeker an acting assistant secretary of state he follows several current and former state officials this coming week the focus shifts to the National Security Council which was designed to advise presidents on security and foreign policy and often works hands in hand but the State Department Michael Allen worked in the n.s.c. During the George w. Bush administration he's in our studios thanks so much for being with us thank you you've been following the reporting on the testimony that's been given so far. Former acting national security advisor Charles cover man for example is on Monday there are reports that former national security advisor John Bolton might be in talks to appear. Are you watching the reports of their testimony for anything in particular I am indeed I want to hear what President Trump believed he was doing and whether he gave explicit instructions to his negotiators or his foreign policy . Let's call him emissaries in the form of Rudy Giuliani to actually advance the quid pro quo narrative that we've heard so much about now I gather Mr Cupper misfiled suit asking for the courts to tell him if he's subject to something called constitutional. I mean a day which the administration says that he is how do you feel about that well he has a point he's caught between the 2 branches of government and so he's asking the 3rd the judicial branch for ruling he has a point. And in that the president does have a right based on the constitution to receive candid advice and the theory goes if Congress can call you up at any time to testify under oath the president over time may not seek that candid advice and it would have a chilling effect on the president's duties to conduct foreign affairs at the same time Congress has a legitimate right to information in an impeachment inquiry so he's asking the court say tell me what to do and I guess that's why they make they make judges right to be able to make to have the wisdom of those rulings. Something that I asked for not knowing in advance our n.s.c. Employees political appointees or staffers who typically serve presidents of both parties or is there a mix there is a mix there are and I was a political appointee a direct hire of the National Security Council but the vast majority of the National Security Council staff are what we called detailed from other agencies so CIA State d o d in some cases Treasury Department officials are there on a one year or 2 year rotation the inquiry at least for the moment seems to be trying to keep its focus on President Trump's call with the Ukrainian president and allegations about the quid pro quo there in your experience how would that how would a call like that come into being well a National Security Council staffer would be in touch with other people across the government to decide when it would be in the best interest of the United States to have a foreign leader call for them to conduct in the legitimate business of the United States in this case as you see the National Security Council staff was in touch with others and they had a real agenda to put forward with the Ukrainians So they scheduled the call work the logistics and ensured that the paperwork going up to the president made sense and was in our in our current enter. And foreign policy and let me ask you Mr Allen how free does a president feel to say Look thanks for the briefs I've read everything I'm up to speed but the fact is I'm going to steer my own course on this because after all that's what elections are about very much so listen the staff put forward all sorts of things that they're working on that they want to be solved through the magic bullet of having the president raise it with a foreign leader but you know President Bush other presidents would look at the documents we put forward to them and they want to talk about whatever they think is in their particular interest so I think it's totally normal for a president to decide what he or she should be raising with a foreign leader Michael Allen who was a member of George w. Bush is President George w. Bush's national security team thanks so much for being with us thank you. 39 people were found dead in a trailer this week in Essex in the United Kingdom 31 men and 8 women they were discovered in the early hours of Wednesday morning in a sealed refrigerated container of the kind that ordinarily transports fruits vegetables or frozen food. For people so far have been arrested in connection with the deaths but identifying those who died could take a long time authorities 1st said they were Chinese nationals now some Vietnamese families say their loved ones may be among the dead they didn't die with passports in their pockets because they didn't want to be sent back to the places they were trying to flee. Their deaths are part of a continuing story of our times people who suffer strive and risk their lives to try to come to the other side of the world in June of 2000 the bodies of 58 Chinese people were found in a truck in the port of Dover and 201435 Afghans including more than a dozen children were found in a shipping container on docks in Essex and 201571 migrants from Afghanistan Iraq and Syria were discovered dead in the back of a truck in Austria one was an infant and 201739 people from Mexico and Central America were found packed into a stifling trailer in a Wal-Mart parking lot in San Antonio 10 people died the United Nations says nearly 19000 migrants have drowned trying to cross the Mediterranean since 2014 almost every year migrants are found in shipping containers in the backs of trucks and on rafts and fishing boats in open perilous seas others perish from heat or cold trying to cross borders in mountains or brush lands the more laws are tightened an entry numbers reduce the more migrants might turn for help to smuggling gangs who often also deal in drugs and guns where between 2 deaths occurred ish man called told the b.b.c. This week he waits in Dunkirk France to pay a fee to ride a truck illegally and dangerously into Britain 39 people die in a truck he said but thousands die in my country are left with many questions about the 39 people found dead in Essex who took their money and were so reckless with their lives what were they escaping and what did they hope for what did they dream about what did they leave behind who will miss them and how will we remember them. And you're listening to n.p.r. News. Support for Alaska Public Media comes from listeners like you thank you the federal subsistence regional advisory councils will have meetings late September through member to develop proposals to change federal subsistence hunting and trapping regulations and discuss other subsistence related issues the public is encouraged to participate either in person or by teleconference for more information go online to deal to go slash subsistence slash regions or call 804781456 or email subsistence at f w s dot gov contact the Office of subsistence management to receive meeting documents or to request special accommodations by 7 business days prior to the meeting this message sponsored by the Office of subsistence management. Joel Snyder with these headlines Northern California is preparing for the possibility of another intentional power outage because of the wildfire threat Pacific Gas and Electric says it will decide today whether to cut power to hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses in the Bay Area strong winds are in the forecast this weekend as firefighters battle flames in northern and southern California House impeachment investigators are meeting today with Philip Reeker the acting assistant secretary of state for Europe a session today comes after a federal judge affirmed the investigation's legality in a ruling yesterday in a baseball's World Series the Houston Astros got one back last night they beat the Washington Nationals 4 to one them will look to even the series and tonight's game 4 I'm trial Snider n.p.r. News from Washington. Support for n.p.r. Comes from this station and from the n.p.r. Wine club where every bottle tells a story and n.p.r. Shows become wines available to adults 21 Years or Older here the story behind the wines on a smart speaker by saying open n.p.r. Wine club and from Weston hotels and resorts offering a range of wellness options for guests including their Eat well menu on demand fitness gear lending program and signature Heavenly Bed learn more at Weston dot com a member of Marriott bond boy. This is Weekend Edition from n.p.r. News I'm Scott Simon when a traumatic event occurs today it's often followed by the quick posting of a video mass shootings or alleged police misconduct or use of chemical weapons they're often uploaded to platforms like You Tube and Facebook which are then under pressure to remove videos that contain violence or graphic imagery but videos of human rights violations can be used as evidence of war crimes in places like Syria Yemen in Myanmar does deleting them help keep war crimes on reported in undocumented and war criminals free witnesses Norbanus zation that helps people used that knowledge Dickey Ali is a program manager there and joins us via Skype from London thanks so much for being with us thank you for having me you recently helped produce a video up ad for The New York Times on this can you give us an example of a video that's been taken down that in your view really should be seen yes and I will say that we work very closely with Syrian archives and they're really working on the ground and seeing a lot of this content get taken down so just to give you a very recent example there was a Facebook that e.o. From June that was showing a protest in Sudan and that's just one video that we've seen get taken down among many that are actually just documenting protests and this is being done by algorithms not human beings that's right content moderation these days still relies on some Him and flagging but it also relies on content moderation algorithms and how do you believe this is preventing human rights violations from being reported and documented Well unfortunately what we're seeing is that these algorithms appear to really be focused on contents that is coming from the Arabic speaking world or from places with large Muslim communities and these are videos we're seeing coming from places as you mentioned like Syria that make a. Content showing for example a barrel bombing it shouldn't be in violation of the standards of either Facebook or You Tube but we still see videos like that get taken down and these are videos that groups like Syrian archive would take and they're a 5 and put into a data collection about a barrel bombing or about a specific chemical attack you know I have made it my business to see number of those videos and it seems to me that you you mediately see and some platforms like Twitter people saying oh that's fake or oh that's from 3 or 4 years ago doesn't that indicate that maybe the platform is best to take it down sometimes that is exactly why groups like Syrian archives are so important because they are going through and verifying the videos using a number of different methods so of course they're using geo location I think they make great use of Google Earth zooming in and looking for buildings and geographical features they're also doing things like cross verifying with weather information looking at different dialects that are spoken and comparing with different sources collecting very large sets of videos that are showing the different same events from different angles so there is actually a way to determine whether or not a video is fake I am aware of the fact that when some other Web sites complained that the video we're seeing is older faked they might be trying to pull a fast one on people to Oh absolutely you know one of the quotes that I like to show people when I'm explaining these videos is directly from Assad and he's speaking about a video of a chemical attack and he's saying you know these videos are probably fake you can't know the video is stakes today and that's what he would like for you to believe but really there is pretty clear and verified evidence of a lot of these incidents what would you like some of these social media platforms to do one of the really important suggestions that we have for social media companies is they need to be retaining. It's evidence they can't just delete it and then have it be gone they need to have some sort of collection that human rights researchers can still access so that it's still available for the International Criminal Court for the United Nations for people who are trying to understand what's happened in Syria you know this is really history that is being deleted and then 2nd of course you know algorithms are being used all over on platforms now but they're being done in a totally in transparent way we really don't know what data they're basing these algorithms on so just being a little bit more transparent. Program Manager for Whitney thank you so much for speaking with us thank you for having me. Boeing's flawed design of a flight control system is one of the major factors that caused the crash of a Lion Air 737 Max or a plane a year ago that killed 189 people Indonesian investigators released their report on the crash yesterday and said that system had a single point of failure something that is almost unheard of and safety critical systems many people both inside Boeing and out say that it may reflect a significant cultural shift at the company N.P.R.'s David Schaper reports Cynthia Cole loved working at Boeing in took a lot of pride in her work as an engineer I had a lot of a story to do the right thing the now retired Cole says in the early part of her 32 years at Boeing she and her colleagues had a lot of conversations about safety you think about what could go wrong that was a big thing about it being an engineer at the Boeing company we would always think of the worst case scenario after all she says there's no room for error when you've got something up in the air flying around you can't just park it off the side of the road in and fix it it has to work all the time but Cole says that safety 1st company culture begin to change after Boeing bought rival McDonnell Douglas in 1997 and it got worse over the last decade or so safety and quality were taking a 2nd seat to schedule and cost Cole who went on to leave the union for Boeing's Engineers says that greater emphasis on maximizing profits over safety caused all kinds of problems as a company developed the $787.00 Dreamliner which ended up 3 years behind schedule and billions over budget and just 14 months after finally entering passenger service authorities grounded the 787 because it's lithium ion batteries were catching fire Cole says having Boeing's next new airplane the max pulled from service to his demoralising it just makes a sad face it has always been. There's no doubt about that Bjorn firm is an aerospace engineer an aviation industry analyst with Liam company but it hasn't been high enough and that is evident today fare into sees a dramatic shift in Boeing's corporate culture in recent years but he says that focus on boosting profits and shareholder value has come with a tragically high cost to $737.00 Max crashes that killed $346.00 people Carnegie Mellon University Business School Professor Brandi a vid says there is often tension between ensuring safety and increasing profits but when times are good employees can feel enormous pressure to stay quiet about safety concerns there's sort of a social expectation that you are aligned with the goals of the company and the group and you want to do as little as you can or you should do as little as you can to get in the way of the success of the endeavors of the organization and furthermore she says employees often find channels to communicate safety concerns lacking She points to the b.p. Deepwater Horizon disaster in the explosion of the Challenger space shuttle is similar examples for its part Boeing recently announced an overhaul of internal safety procedures and reporting protocols at the company insists safety is always the top priority but as it faces a tense scrutiny from global regulators Justice Department investigators and Congress even says Boeing must do more than just talk about safety they also have to really put their money where their mouth is in terms of their culture making sure it is clear to all employees that that will be the focus moving forward if they're going to come back from this real systemic checks and balances will be costly she says but critical to regaining the flying public trusted Boeing's airplanes David Schaper n.p.r. News. And the new movie The current war Director's Cut to. Titans of industry clash to bring power electric power to the people Thomas Edison is played by Benedict Cumberbatch his current kills people on the bill could use it as a current or was one of r.v. Weinstein's last films before he was ousted from public life after numerous women stepped forward to accuse him of years of sexual misconduct and as N.P.R.'s Elizabeth Blair reports the film almost didn't get released at all Russian filmmaker Timor Bekmambetov is best known for making horror films but when he read about the so-called war of the currents he knew he needed to make the movie he comes from a family of electrical engineers it's a story about the responsibility of creators Director Alfonso Gomez Rae hone grew up in Laredo Texas he directed the indie film me Earl and the dying girl he says the rivalry between Edison and Westinghouse reads like a 19th century version of Steve Jobs versus Bill Gates and so much about ego and humility and invention and responsibility ego humility invention and responsibility Thomas Edison was an obsessive tinkerer his credited with inventing the phonograph and one of the 1st motion picture devices he could also be difficult a combination of twinkling charm and bruising imperiousness writes Edison biographer Edmund Morris George Westinghouse was a savvy businessman and engineer he invented a railroad air brake that made trains safe for a big man with a 100000 horsepower inside him begins his New York Times a bit you airy from 1004 if you want to be remembered example shoot a president. But if you prefer to have what I call a legacy you leave the world a better place than you found this is an epic at times complex story that covers history science even ethical. Dilemma's around the invention of the electric chair Timor a Bekmambetov thought it was just the kind of movie Harvey Weinstein would take on Weinstein had championed his work in the past and produced one of his movies so Bekmambetov asked him if he would produce the current war then he immediately said yes and and helped a lot to cast the movie end to end in the movie. And unfortunately was very very close to destroy the work that 1st time the current war was shown in public it was at the Toronto Film Festival in September 2017 but Director Alfonso Gomez Ray Hahn says they screened a version Weinstein wanted not him and we rushed to show a work in progress that was not my vision for the story and then we were reviewed as a finished film and that kind of became a reality I was became very difficult to live with after the bad reviews at Toronto things got worse just weeks later the explosive allegations against Weinstein hit the news here c.n.n. Disturbing new accusations against the movie mogul Harvey Weinstein of more stores are coming forward some accusing him of sexual assault Harvey Weinstein denies the allegations at the time the Weinstein Company had a multiple film and t.v. Projects in development almost immediately they were in limbo it was absolute total confusion because overnight you heard nothing from the top anymore then they learned that the Weinstein Company was looking for a distributor to release Weinstein's cut and here's where the story takes a turn in favor of the director knowing Harvey Weinstein could be difficult Gomez rehung agent had included a clause in his contract with Weinstein that gave Martin Scorsese the final cut of the film so he put a clause in my contract that said if you win Harvey could never come to terms with what a final cut of the film. Is that Scorsese who is a mentor of mine would have final cut at that point Final Cut is the most sensitive complex discussion that one has particularly around independent film Elsa Rameau is an entertainment attorney who's negotiated hundreds of movie contracts she says there are often competing interests between directors producers and financier's over who gets final cut she calls Gomez for a Hans clause allowing score says a final cut genius the idea of putting in sort of the godfather of all movies to do the final sign off makes a lot of logical science you know perhaps it was at a time when Harvey Weinstein bought his hands were clean but generally one does not hand the keys to the kingdom to someone unless there's almost an absolute certainty that things will turn out the way that you want them to things often don't turn out the way you want them to in business in art in life Gomez Rehan says at least with the current war director's cut it's his work and his vision if it fails it's you have no one to blame but yourself and there's there's there's a freedom to that too in the credits for the current war director's cut there's no mention of Harvey Weinstein Elizabeth Blair n.p.r. News. Was . You're listening to Weekend Edition from n.p.r. News. There's been a spike in air pollution in the United States that alarms government scientists Well they used to be government scientists We'll get to that in just a moment with Chris Frey of North Carolina State University Dr Fray thanks so much for being with us now thank you Scott research out of Carnegie Mellon points to a rise in particular it's in the air from 2016 to 2018 What are the particular dangers of particulates Oh there are many and it depends on the size of the particles the ones that the Carnegie Mellon study is focusing on or what we call fine particles or pm 2.5 And these are particles that when you breathe them they can get deep into your lungs and they can even get to the the out of Ely which are the air sacs that exchange oxygen from the air you breathe into your blood and so these particles can cause a range of effects from respiratory illness and cardiovascular illness to premature death why the rise in particular to in the air one thing that we're seeing in some of the work that I and colleagues have been doing recently is that you know there's evidence that there's increased drought in some parts of the country that is leading for example to more so-called wildfires and you know we're seeing wildfires right now in multiple parts of California those wildfires I said so-called as they're partly a result of human activity you know if a transformer makes a spark in a dry area and it ignites a fire and then the burn of the fire how much land is burned depends on things like land use practices so that seems to be increasing quite a bit so the contribution of wildfires is probably one of the leading reasons why we're seeing an increase despite the decreases in particles from other sources like power plants and cars I referred to people who used to be. Government scientists in introducing you and I was alluding to the fact that you were part of a group of scientists who were advising the Government on particulate matter and what happened yeah a lot of things have 10 but hopefully the short version of the story is in 2018 October 10th 2018 by press release we learned that current e.t.a. Administrate are Wheeler had disbanded our panel in the middle of a review cycle and we were given no reason why and shortly after we disbanded about 20 of us decided well we agreed to provide public service and to advise the agency in the public on the health effects of particulate matter and just because we're separated from me ph doesn't mean we can't keep doing that so you and your colleagues have continued to do this work on your own in the public interest Yes that's right what should be done so to reduce the particulate matter is a pretty complicated thing because there are emission controls that can be used for large what we call stationary sources like power plants and industrial boilers to capture particles but there are also gases that are emitted and in the atmosphere they become particles so so for dioxide nitrogen oxide organic compounds some of it goes back to things like refineries and you know industries that use solvent and it touches on so many different industries and sectors of the economy that in a sense everybody can kind of make a contribution to to reducing and then the other thing is there's a growing share of what we refer to as wildfires but you know they're not necessarily truly wild in their origin or how they burn Chris Rea North Carolina State University thanks so much for being with us now you're welcome. This is n.p.r. News. Billionaire philanthropist George Soros has been fighting for liberal democracy and progressive causes for decades the tide has turned against free but I don't think. In a rare interview George Soros talks about the 2020 election the impeachment inquiry and his new book In Defense of open society that's on the next All Things Considered from n.p.r. News. Lobbyists are often viewed with skepticism and seen as representatives of special interest groups that want to drive policy change that favors big business but many who lobby government are citizens often volunteers who seek better health care and improve schools or clean air and water how does it affect government policy lobbying in Alaska is our discussion on the next topic of Alaska Tuesday at 10 am repeating at 8 pm on f.m. 91 point one. Later with these headlines some production of General Motors factories could resume today after g.m. Has union workers voted in favor of ending their 40 day strike the new agreement as a 4 year deal it's expected to be used as a template to negotiations with Ford British police are now questioning 4 people in connection with the investigation into the deaths of 39 people found in the back of a container truck before suspected of human trafficking the truck was found Wednesday in southeastern England and tens of thousands are on the streets of Taiwan's capital today for the annual pride parade that marches of firsts and skate marriage was legalized earlier this year on joyous night or n.p.r. News from Washington. Support for n.p.r. Comes from this station and from Weston hotels and resorts offering a range of wellness options for guests including their well menu on demand fitness gear lending program and signature Heavenly Bed learn more at Weston dot com a member of Marriott bon voyage and from new mom offering a personalized weight loss program based on a cognitive behavioral approach with the goal of losing weight and keeping it off for good learn more at noon and o.o.m. Dot com This is Weekend Edition from n.p.r. News I'm Scott Simon investigations into child sexual abuse in the Roman Catholic Church have been the topic of gut wrenching movies books and documentaries they claim French director Francois is now telling another story in French. But the grace of God is based on a true story and Texas slightly different approach telling the story from the victim's point of view as Rebecca Rosman reports French director Francoise is own is known for his movies that feature strong female protagonists like 2008 women but for his latest was on wanted to do something different this time I wanted to make a film about men a bit of men about to men able to express fare sensitivity emotions as. The film opens in 2014 it with the story of Alexander a 40 year old banker devout Catholic and father of 5 who was abused by a priest in Catholic Scouts after finding out that the priest is still working with children he goes to the church to confess what happened to him thinking it will put an end to the priest career when it doesn't Alexander goes to the police to press charges because he caught a political issue. In real life the case to international attention and led to the creation of an organization called Babylon or lift the burden founded in 2015 the group has collected testimonies from the victims of Bell knowledge play not a priest who spent 3 decades sexually abusing dozens of boys in the city of don't play not actions were widely known within the church but systematically covered up until Alexander became the 1st victim to press charges says filmmaker flaunts what was on it was amazing when I did d. Investigation under a subject when I need to older people and when they were had already at a course I realized these priests never heard about the facts he said always I have problems Keats to church knew and he did nothing during 30 years so it's so shocking and unfair so I wanted to show that. And really you behaved well and you could do those things. In France because we lost a lot of people to speech with no limits I mean the real an example of you so is is who carries the same polished feel of his on screen character at a café steps away from the Paris Opera House we would like that we are not one to 45 but we have more than and with people with exactly the same story and with exactly the same impact of the life he tells me that I was on 1st approached him with the intention of making a documentary he rejected the idea insisting on a fiction film instead because to my mind I think that theme can become a story we have everybody and not only the story of but it's only that is so false what do carry manually etc. I we realized they were waiting for me to make a kind of French play so I said Ok I'm able to make fiction I will tell your story as a fiction always actress but ozone film does stay close to actual events keeping the main characters names and using real dialogue from press conferences. Is portrayed in the film as a man who despite his near genius i.q. Struggles both in his professional and personal life I think it is still traumatized by his abuse and kids that are just going to go to court and. The community is that we also meet once lost Thank you based on what developed an outspoken atheist who helped start the organization. If you want to she shows up I made the leap into law is a little mom is a journalist for the Catholic newspaper clock she's written a book about the play not a fair study of own potato existence and she applauds ozone for his accuracy over the intimacy he displays throughout the film with fiction she says you know you can express certain fragilities and emotions that help the audience connect better with the story. Getting those emotions in theaters wasn't easy. Francois it was on says the Catholic Church tried to block the French release of the film in February arguing it would have an impact on the trials of father play not in Philly the cardinal who covered up the abuse people are afraid of cinema you know it's the power of cinema you realise if you like the spotlight was very powerful and actually all the people of the church well I was like the devil before the release of the film and went a few more as the releases are maybe as a cent because if you missed any may cardinal Barber was given a 6 month suspended sentence for failing to report the abuse father play not to was defrocked and is awaiting trial next year for n.p.r. News I'm Rebecca Rosman in Paris. If you've spent any time around ice arena as you know this signature sound. Zamboni even the name sounds magical Zamboni Zamboni circling the rink replacing the bad old ice with a new surface that's macula and smooth as the philosopher Charlie Brown once observed in that seminal work she's a good skater Charlie Brown bears repeating that people like hearing aids. Crackling fire and they're funny. This year marks the 70th year they've been able to do that thanks to Frank Zamboni a Californian with an ice rink and a problem it took a significant amount of time and labor to resurface the ice that's Paula Cooney spokesperson for the Zamboni company it took 4 or 5 people with a plane or in some squeegees and some hoses close to an hour and a half to do the resurfacing that's an hour and a half when people could be pain to skate so Frank Zamboni took some more surplus parts including a jeep Jacey's and almost a decade and by 949 he had concocted a machine to make quick work of that rough old ice that took that hour and a half down to about 10 or 15 minute resurfacing 10 to 15 minutes now this machine was supposed to be a miracle Frank Zamboni used only at his skating rink but you know who came to that rink one day. Out of a t.v. Star going to take me with an exhibition the freestate Norway 3 time Olympic gold champion figure skater and Hollywood stars shone and she was in Paramount California with her traveling nice review and needed a place to practice Frank Zamboni was ready to impress he brought this machine out on the ice sea lovingly later referred to it as the monstrosity and she said I'll take 2 so in your head he loved how quickly it made the ice. Glassy and clean like a Nordic pond Not that I've ever seen one she got her own Zamboni's and took them on tour other ice rink owners didn't want to miss out on the ice shaving Revolution and before long Frank Zamboni was building a company and supplying Zamboni's all over the world. Today the company estimates there are nearly 12000 Zamboni's in use there are other brands of ice resurface ors Olympia the Ok Electra and f y I It is not polite to call them all Zamboni's It's like calling every cola a coke but what's it like to actually drive a Zamboni ask the Ice Man everybody looks at you and think that this is such an easy job Jimmy Iceman McNeil of Brantford Ontario he was there Zamboni driver of the Year in 1999 can you name any of them the iceman says driving them on a little bit of science it's an art you have levers you have button and a lot to worry about if you want to hold on to that trophy there's a nice cutting blade and 2 water tanks a spinning brush to clear the snow from the sides of the rink there's this M.-Bone he drives by at the breakneck speed of 5 miles an hour. And even though he's been driving Zamboni's for 4 decades Jimmie Iceman McNeill still watches his back but I can almost guarantee Peter will run driver that hasn't come off and had some hockey fan or figure skating fans say you missed the spot yeah pal your mouths. Are. There are countless love songs and love poems She Walks in Beauty like the night of cloudless Kline's and starry skies and all that best to darken bright meet in her aspect and her eyes That's Byron google it but you notice how Love Poems don't mention diapers tantrums or eating leftover pop tarts from the floor most pay arms to love are about the 1st blush of attraction before marriage or children but John Kenny of the New Yorker contributor and winner of the Thurber Prize has written a book of tender and passionate poems of devotion for lovers who are partners in the love of a child or several children love poems for people with children John Kenny joins us now our studios thanks so much for being with us thank you for having me you know I don't want to delay the rapturous ness of these poetic insights you have Secretary we get you're pleased to read the poem My 6 year old got hold of my phone I would be happy to. My apologies Reverend my 6 year old got hold of my phone and sent you 142 pooper Modi's please know that this in no way reflects my opinion of you or the church although it does make me wonder if there is a god to my father in law Lou No grandparent should ever receive a jiffy of Fabio not wearing pants dancing suggestively with the words Let's get it on I was sure I had deleted that and to my boss Gary did you happen to receive a photo of a baboon's ass with a note reading found this picture of you. I sent that one that is so affecting and beautiful thank you very much I I take my poetry seriously. Do you kind of you're poet inspiration so you can't smell a Shelley really all of those people I think my poetry is I use that word loosely is poetry in much the same way I say Arby's is farm to table dining. I'm sorry I don't know why I'm laughing. One of the many joys of parenthood is is rediscovering childhood could we please get you to read the poem I am fully aware that I am fully aware that the wheels of the bus go round and round Of course I am fully aware that the wheels on the bus go round and round I get it I know about the wheels and the horn in the babies everyone knows that here's something you might not know the daddy on this bus is thinking this is not what I signed up for and maybe the driver on the bus is thinking the exact same thing maybe he looks over at the daddy and he doesn't go move on back maybe instead he nods and smiles and the daddy nods and smiles and the driver hits the gas and go zones rooms him so fast the mommy's on the bus a slow down and the driver screeches to a halt the corner because he sees a sign for a bar called open at 9 am and he and the daddy get off the bus and go into a bar call a nuber because this bus is out of service saying that verse why don't you. Head is so tender there is another poem that I want you to read that I think would be important for people to hear. I do want to caution our listeners the poem might contain disturbing content which is what we have to do nowadays the poem is called Baby Wipes. Baby wipes. If you had told me in my twenty's that I would do this I wouldn't believe you but this morning the baby's poop shot out like a cannon ball and some of it landed in my hair well I was pretty tired and I guess too lazy to shower and I was late for work so what I did was take a baby wipe and clean it out of my hair most of it anyway then I went on with my day. That is such a tender and beautiful image shot out like a cannon ball really well you know marriage with children is endlessly sort of a legion beautiful isn't it yes yeah as you know as these poems underskirts perfect there as is just endless amounts of sleep and love and almost too much sex and. It's a joy is what it is well that is a joy but we'll get to that. I do want to ask about your you know your method of construction what I mean what what comes 1st to you the imagery or the wordplay. I think it's the title. I've been very fortunate I have a lot of parent friends and I will send out an email saying Give me your tired poor and worst situations and we try to turn those into poems I don't draw on my own life at all Scott it's perfect it's all made up it's all me it's all fiction I am taking a look at your hair. In occurred to me before a last poem to share. The predecessor to this book was love poems for married people and right before the book went to the printer I thought you know I should attempt to write one real one and I wrote it to my wife and I thought with this one I should do the same thing but to my children so I have a daughter and a son Lulu and Hewitt So this poem is called for Lulu and Hewitt no offense to either of you but I preferred the idea of kids to actual kids who needs kids of their own when you have 9 nieces and nephews you get to be an uncle for a while then you get to go home alone and sleep I blame your mother and her beautiful face and deeply kind spirit and her perfect answer to why she wanted children because I'm tired of worrying about myself I want to worry about someone else. Can I tell you to a secret I was afraid I was afraid I wouldn't be good enough to Moody too needy too impatient too selfish too lacking. But then you were born and you told me a secret. Daddy whispered all you have to do as watch me and listen to me and take my hand and I'll teach you how to be a father. And then you spit up on my shirt. Every night before you go to sleep I lean down and whisper the same sentence in a lifetime of questions and confusion they are the truest words I know. I'm so lucky to be your dad that. Children are a great blessing and adventure. And they're not going to get an argument from me John Kennedy love poems for people with children thanks so much for being with us thank you for having me. Weekend Edition from n.p.r. News I'm Scott. Support for n.p.r. Comes from this station and from Reprise Records featuring Neil Young with Crazy Horses latest album Colorado their 1st album in more than 7 years on vinyl cd and hire a streaming Murrett Neil Young archives dot com from f j.c. a Foundation of donor advised funds working to maximize the impact of charitable giving and to create customized philanthropic solutions learn more at f j c dot org And from the listeners who support this n.p.r. Station. Her support for Alaska Public Media comes from the Duluth trading store in Anchorage 14005 square feet of average ousting workwear for hard working men and women Duluth trading in anchorage off old Seward Highway and Diamond Boulevard and from members like you thank you. The University of Alaska's 3 universities in Anchorage Fairbanks and Juneau have a single accreditation for 3 separate accreditations with budget cuts looming that's a question facing our state I'm Kathleen McCoy and the next home town Alaska will speak with faculty from each university on their solution to this problem and why it's Monday at 2 repeating at 8 Onalaska public media f.m. $91.00 Tell your smart speaker to play k s k a you've just gotta see recollect the cemetery when you're in Buenos Aires it's like a little miniature city within a city find out about the unusual crypt of Sicily almost like a mummy fashion show and hear what it's like to travel with the grim reaper It's a visceral sense of have we are not going to last in this form on the next travel tricks the Sunday at 6 pm on f.m. 91 point one. Thank you so much for your support of k s k Anchorage Alaska Public Media f.m. 91 point one connecting Alaskans life informed. From n.p.r. News in Washington d.c. This is Weekend Edition. I'm Scott Simon a swarm of legislators encircled by bright lights the press themselves into a close congressional committee room this week Representative Matt Gates of Florida said we're going to go and see if we can get inside so close. But as it turns out a number of those lawmakers could have just gone into the hearing where Defense Department officer was testifying without all the key at this hour bipartisan history of political stunts and later California fires the crush of the Saddam seekers in Mexico and a book about a single day in history that fills a story of love loss and life 1st we have our news cast it's Saturday October 26th 2090. Live from n.p.r. News in Washington and Barbara Kline the House is due to resume its impeachment inquiry into President Trump this hour N.P.R.'s Winsor Johnston reports the unusual weekend deposition is drawing sharp criticism from congressional Republicans acting assistant secretary of State for European and your Asian affairs Philip Reeker was scheduled to testify before the House on Wednesday but his deposition was postponed that same day the ranking Republican on the House Oversight Committee Jim Jordan sent raker a letter scolding him for agreeing to reschedule his deposition too and Saturday Jordan went on to accuse congressional Democrats of holding testimony on a weekend to limit member attendance and participation Rekers testimony comes as the House continues to investigate whether Trump withheld military aid to Ukraine for political gain Winsor Johnston n.p.r. News Washington Russia's defense ministry is calling the u.s. Decision to send combat troops and armored vehicles into eastern Syria international state banditry defense secretary Mark esper says the move is aimed at protecting oilfields from Islamic state militants in northern California Pacific Gas and Electric is telling tens of thousands to prepare for another round of intentional power cuts because of critical fire weather forecast.

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